Road Etiquette & Politeness is the foundation of any driving-’culture’! In the UAE, due to it’s influx from many different driving-cultures, is seems there is the lack of one defined and universally accepted set of road etiquette rules. In our opinion, this set of Road Etiquette & Politeness rules must be established, broadly and consistently communicated and ingrained into the behavior of all drivers, in order to create a strong base of better road safety!
We conducted a research project and here are the most important findings: Only 34% think that other drivers are ‘polite and caring’ drivers!
THE BASIC RULE (!)
- TREAT OTHERS LIKE YOU WANT TO BE TREATED!
- Be caring, polite, well mannered and relaxed!
- If we can establish a culture of driving WITH EACH OTHER, rather than AGAINST each other, we will quickly improve the road safety!
Indicator / Signaling
- Always use your indicator and signal where you want to go!
- This protects you and others.
- When you see somebody indicating, allow them to move and do not block them.
Thank-you
- Raise your right hand to say ‘thank-you’. This goes a long way!
Pedestrian crossings
- In the vehicle, you are in the stronger position – hence be caring, considerate and polite to pedestrians and obey the yield signs at zebra crossings.
- Don’t forget: as soon as you step out of your car, you are also a pedestrian!
Parking/Stopping
- Park mindful of others, use only 1 parking slot, don’t bump your door in your neighbor’s car.
- Do not block others
- Obey to n0-parking signs
- Do not stop on highways, for example next to metro stations!
Rear fog light
- Use it ONLY in fog, rain, sandstorms or other low-visibility situations.
- It is not cool to use your rear fog light if there is no fog. You blind others and you put yourself in danger, since the bright fog light may overpower your breaking lights and oncoming traffic might not see you breaking when your fog lights are on. Protect you and others!
Going against one-way lanes
- In parking lots, we often observe drivers going against one-way lanes. This is not only rude but can also result in damages to your car and your health. Be mindful of the simple concept of one-way lanes.
Running of engine
- Avoid running your engine in underground car parks or if your car sits idle.
- Running engines pollute the air and we want to protect the environment.
- If you need A/C , go indoors rather than leaving your engine on.
Littering
- Don’t litter and don’t throw trash or cigarettes out of your car – regardless if you are driving or parking.
- Not only is it unappealing, but you can also distract fellow drivers and cigarettes can start fires when caught by other cars.
- Dispose of your trash properly in trash bins.
Crossing multiple lanes
- If you want to exit, move to the exit lane on time, and never cross more than one lane at once
- If you enter a highway, move gradually to the faster lanes, never cross more than one lane at once
Jumping the queue
- One of the most annoying misbehavior we see on our streets!
- There is NO justification to jump a queue – everyone must wait for his/her turn – even in the fanciest of cars!
Discipline at traffic lights
- If you want to turn right after the traffic light, queue in the right lane
- Do not cut over lanes right after the traffic light switches to green
Behavior in the fast lane
- Respect the driver in front of you – don’t bully them and keep a safe distance
- If you see faster vehicles approaching from behind, leave the fast lane and let them pass
- Move out and in the fast lane swiftly – do not block or obstruct others
We worked with Khaleej Times in April 2019 on an article about littering and the implications on road safety: https://www.khaleejtimes.com/kt-for-good/kt-for-good-your-trash-can-become-a-road-hazard-too-
All of thee above comments are very true on a day to day basis you see these things happening every day. Children getting put in cars with no seat belt still happens all the time children in the front of cars this needs to stop fines need to be higher. People need to be educated about these things .
Also honking without any reason is a matter of education and courtesy. In the UAE many drivers are honking without any respect to residents
As someone said before: “I had a dream…” Well, if all of the above could be done, driving would such a pleasure!
When you consider just indicating. Beside using the indicator which is pretty rare, trying to sensibilize driver on HOW to use it. It would be like: “hello, excuse me, could I possibly move to the next lane or turn in this direction please?” Rather than, “I put my indicator THEREFORE I move onto the next lane and you’d better stop or slow down!” I teach my children that Indicating is showing an Intention to turn or to change lane and to be honest on the contrary of what I hear or read, once you indicate a lot of driver will let you pass. Of course, you have those who won’t.
Once again, we always come back to the fundamentals: Driving skills & respectful attitude